Tangible Irony
by Alphabetical
Summary: How is Ichigo supposed to deal with this? He's holding a life in his hands whose life is surrounded in irony. MPreg, Yaoi, GrimmIchi. First attempt at FanFic.
1. Chapter 1

Four beings inhabited the dark, lonely room, and four emotions were felt: amusement, contemplation, protection, and fear. Cold brown eyes were busy making a plan for this little… situation. A large grin with closed eyes could only laugh mentally at what was before him. Bright cerulean eyes quickly looked down at the one clutching onto his arm, then back up to the Lord sitting atop his throne. And lastly, chocolate brown eyes looked up at blue, and also followed his sight path to the man deciding his make-shift family's fate.

"Now, what is this? Grimmjow, my Sexta Espada, claiming responsibility for Kurosaki Ichigo? I find this odd. Would either of you two care to explain this situation a little more clearly?" Aizen had his smug, all-knowing grin dominating his features. Gin merely chuckled behind him. '_What do we have here, eh?_'.

Ichigo ever-so-slightly tightened his grip on Grimmjow's arm. Grimmjow responded with a reassuring arm around Ichigo's shoulders. "Well, Aizen…sama, I think that I've got myself a family in the works," was Grimmjow's unsure response. He had never cared for Aizen, but this was one situation he was not too careless with. Grimmjow looked down again to look at Ichigo's enlarged belly. Ichigo placed his arms across his stomach protectively. '_As if it'll help…_' Ichigo thought.

Ichigo's increase in size had begun a little over four months ago. Grimmjow visited almost nightly; he and Ichigo had routine activities to keep up. But almost a month after their last activity, Ichigo could feel something beginning to change. He used the bathroom a lot more, he felt tired almost constantly even though he hadn't done any exercise out of the normal (fighting Hollows was a daily routine anyway). He tried sleeping more, but that didn't really help. Along the way, he found himself in an emotional turmoil will everyone: Rukia, Urahara, and even a little more than normal aggression towards his father.

Rukia had also noticed the slight abnormality; she confronted Renji about it. "What do you think is wrong with Ichigo?" her voice was puzzled and she seemed to be talking more to herself than Renji. Renji had remained ignorant.

"Something's wrong? I didn't even notice..." his blank facial expression backed up his story.

"I know there's something wrong; hasn't he yelled at you more lately? You should've seem him at Urahara's, he was crazy!" Rukia's attention still seemed like she wasn't paying attention to Renji.

"Have you asked him about it?" Renji's mind seemed to click; he vaguely remember Ichigo's almost random outburst in Urahara's face.

"No... maybe he doesn't even realize himself? If it goes on, I'll definitely confront him about it," were her last thoughts on the situation. Little did they know, Ichigo had noticed these changes...

They had begun to scare him; was something going wrong? Ichigo and Grimmjow managed to keep up their nightly fun, but Grimmjow often became a magnet for attracting Ichigo's mood swings. Grimmjow only had a sense of calm when they were in the middle of sex, and he really couldn't consider that calm, but hey, Ichigo wasn't screaming at him, or crying on his shoulder for almost no reason at all. Grimmjow often gave him a more than slightly confused look, but that only caused Ichigo to burst into tears.

It had been about a month and a half since his change in behavior, and Ichigo's belly now started to stick out farther than before; Ichigo had to try to keep his bulge a secret from his friends, but it was getting harder and harder. Ichigo stared at himself in the mirror in the bathroom while in his shinigami form. The loose fitting outfit was really the only thing that gave him comfort around his belly lately, but despite the roomy outfit, his stomach was visibly larger. Thoughts like: "What if they ask questions?" or "What is this?" and even "Am I just a freak?" came flooding in.

Rukia had picked up on his sudden absence from a fight and merely got an "It's nothing" from Ichigo. As time went on, he was rarely seen during a fight.

Ichigo quickly made his way to Urahara's shop; he had to know what was wrong immediately. After a private talk and an ultrasound machine that Urahara just so happened to have hiding in his shop, Urahara's words weren't making any sense: "Ichigo-san, you're… well, you're a mother." Ichigo merely stared at his trusted friend with utter confusion.

"Eh, Urahara, I can't have a baby, remember? I'm not a woman," Ichigo's facial expression of 'are you an idiot?' made Urahara feel more than slightly uncomfortable.

"Ah, I know Ichigo-san, but I really don't have a witty retort for this one. You're just… a mother." Urahara whipped out his fan and began to blow cool wind across his face. "I'll study it, but… for now just go home and rest. By the way… who's the father?" Urahara finished with an annoying obvious teasing voice.

It was that night that Ichigo told Grimmjow about his situation. Grimmjow was just as dumbfounded as he was. Ichigo thought quietly as he lay next to Grimmjow: What if Soul Society got involved? Would they consider him an enemy? Would they try to kill his baby? Ichigo hadn't thought of these things before, but now he knew he had to get him and his baby away from Karakura, away from his friends, away from Soul Society…

And this is where Ichigo found himself standing, in front of the very man he was trying to defeat only a few days ago, pleading for safety.

Aizen looked at Ichigo with calculating eyes; this boy, and that's what he was, just a boy who had gotten into a little more than he bargained for, had the ability to harbor children? This could prove useful somewhere along his plan, but right now, he had Soul Society's best chance at victory standing right in front of him asking for a place to stay. Oh is this irony? Aizen had made a decision. He looked to Gin only to receive one of his usual creepy grins.

Aizen looked back at this little group, "Kurosaki Ichigo, you tried to defeat me and my army only yesterday, now you come asking for my sympathy? How do I know you're not just playing a game?"

Ichigo opened his mouth to answer but faltered. He tried again: "Aizen, I wouldn't play a game with something this… important. I won't ask you to give me anything but a place to stay and a small grant of protection for my child…" Ichigo felt weird speaking these words, he had obviously never planned on living in Las Noches, let alone being pregnant during it all.

Aizen grinned. "Well Kurosaki, I'll let you stay here on a few conditions: you will go to weekly checkups with Szayel, you will wear my uniforms, along with behaving as Grimmjow's Fraccion; however, for the time being, you will not be allowed to fight against anyone, but once you are able, you will, without any hesitation or question, become a true Espada and fight against Soul Society."

Ichigo felt his heart drop at these requirements. He was going to go against all he had been fighting for so long. Ichigo swallowed hard and looked up at Grimmjow, then to Aizen. "I accept your terms, and I want to stay with Grimmjow as much as possible, can he… he come with me to see Szayel?"

Aizen couldn't help but stare at this boy with wonder; he came here asking for shelter and now he's trying to make negotiations? '_Whatever,_' he thought. "That's fine, now Grimmjow, show Ichigo to your quarters. A servant will be along in a short while to bring you your meal and a change of attire."

Ichigo gulped as he turned with Grimmjow to face his new life and all the problems that came with it.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Gahh, I'm sorry if the previous chapter was too horrible for your liking~ I really did try. Well, I'm adding the second chapter, but my updates will be more than slightly random~ Thank you for the reviews anyway! They made me smile x)

* * *

Ichigo's eyes fluttered across the monochrome desert of Hueco Mundo, crossing over a quartz tree now and again. He sat in a stark white rocking chair set in the corner of Grimmjow's quarters. Ichigo often sat in the chair whenever he wanted to get as close to relaxation as possible. His arm was now almost always draped over his large belly, as if trying to protect the life within from the grimaces and hatred aimed at both of them. His thoughts then took him to Grimmjow. Grimmjow had been almost avoiding him lately; whenever they would be walking in the labyrinth of Las Noches, Grimmjow refused to look at him, talk to him, or even acknowledge his presence. Since this obvious distance started, Ichigo had since refused to leave Grimmjow's quarters and had stopped attempting conversation with the Espada.

The more Ichigo thought about it, the more it made sense to avoid him. After all, how could the most outrageous and crazed Espada, who would kill you if you looked at him wrong, become a father? Ichigo felt guilty for having the realization; how could he have not noticed Grimmjow's situation in all this? Ichigo closed his eyes and thought about how they were when they had first encountered each other in Karakura Town: both of them had no feelings other than hatred for each other, life was so simple, just kill the other. Grimmjow and Ichigo would both get a good fight, but before one of them actually won, Grimmjow would be summoned back to Hueco Mundo, and the fight would begin again some other time.

Ichigo's reminiscence brought him back to his friends: Rukia, Renji, Chad, Orihime, Urahara, even Tatsuki. He wondered if they were worried about him, why had he had suddenly disappeared. Ichigo remembered his old shinigami outfit, now replaced with a standard while arrancar uniform. He missed Zangetsu, who was locked away somewhere in Las Noches to prevent any fights from breaking out. He then thought back to his family, which was the reason for the existence of his shinigami powers to begin with.

Ichigo continued to retrospect with a small, bitter smile on his face. Why couldn't it go back to being so simple?

* * *

Grimmjow stalked around, brooding over the past few days. He felt confused; why had this happened? It felt like he was tossed backwards and flipped upside down. He had begun to separate himself from Ichigo, his one and only symbol that he had some sanity left in him. Grimmjow's scattered thoughts had justified this by claiming that if Grimmjow got too close to Ichigo, he might want to fight again, and if Grimmjow couldn't control the urge, who's to say that he might turn around and strike Ichigo without a second thought, and hurt the baby?

Grimmjow stopped. 'The baby.' That was a phrase that came up often in his pondering. He still hadn't accepted he had a child developing inside his partner. Thinking of baby, Grimmjow thought, it's about time for Ichigo to head to Szayel's place. Grimmjow turned the opposite direction, towards his room, where Ichigo undoubtedly was.

By the time Grimmjow had reached his own room, Ichigo had disappeared and left everything untouched. Grimmjow paused for a second to think: Why was Ichigo gone? He didn't know the way to Szayel's on his own, there's no way! Maybe he was taken? That last thought stopped Grimmjow's contemplation of the situation right there; he tensed up, as if going only on instinct now. Grimmjow quickly tracked down the hall, hoping to sense Ichigo.

Grimmjow's normal unapproachable attitude was magnified 10 fold; he had knocked quite a few arrancar into the walls of Las Noches for simply being within a few feet of him. And then, there it was: there somewhere down the hall, he sensed Ichigo, his most prized possession. Grimmjow subconsciously sped up until he ran into a sight he never thought he'd see...

* * *

Ichigo smiled at the arrancar accompanying him. It was Tesla, Nnoitra's Fraccion. Ichigo had posed his head outside the door to see if Grimmjow was coming for their visit to Szayel, but had discovered Tesla instead. The Fraccion seemed to be temporarily startled by Ichigo's sudden appearance, but his surprise increased when Ichigo asked him to show him to Szayel.

Ichigo had a large smile on his face as Tesla small-talked with him. It was so much better to have a conversation while walking, rather than go in a stand-off silence, like him and Grimmjow. Funny that Ichigo should think of Grimmjow in that moment; not only was Grimmjow suddenly behind him, his reiatsu was obviously very irate. Ichigo opened his mouth to ask Grimmjow where he was, but the attempt was cut off by Grimmjow's large, firm hand covering his mouth, with a very riled look at Tesla.

-----

Tesla's bashful smile quickly fled his features when he saw Grimmjow Jeagerjaques standing just inches away from him, without Nnoitra-sama present, though it was highly doubtful Nnoitra-sama would save him anyhow. Tesla took an involuntary step back as Grimmjow confronted him: "And where do you think you're going with him?" Grimmjow inclined his head towards Ichigo, whose mouth was still covered with Grimmjow's hand.

"I was merely taking him to Szayel, like he asked," Tesla answered.

Grimmjow started at Tesla, but was stopped with a firm hand of Ichigo settled on his wrist. "I asked him so you wouldn't have to deal with and this anymore," Ichigo angrily shot back, is arm draping delicately over his stomach. Ichigo slapped Grimmjow's hand away, reaching out for Tesla's instead. "We're going."

Grimmjow stood dumbfounded; he was just talked back to by a simple human? A shinigami? And even worse, his lover? Grimmjow glared at Ichigo's back as he and that shrimp of a man walked away from him.

-----

Standing a little ways behind Grimmjow stood another slightly irked Espada, one with piano-key teeth and a thinly slit eye. His Fraccion had disappeared on him to join their enemy? Nnoitra would make his point of view clear once Tesla was free from that shinigami brat. All he had to do was waiting, right? A wide-spread grin donned his features. 'Just wait.'

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OHH SNAP! Shit's gonna hit the fan here pretty soon. I like reviews. And thanks to all who actually reads this. n___n


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N**: Woww, I had a little trouble writing this chapter. I had so many ideas; it was really hard to condense them down into a readable work. So please enjoy~ And as always, thanks a bunch for the reviews!

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Ichigo turned the corner with Tesla's hand still held firmly in his. A small "Ahem" from Tesla made Ichigo let go instantly. "I'm really sorry you had to be in the middle of that. Just point in the direction of Szayel and I'll leave you alone." Ichigo's saddened smile made Tesla feel almost heartbroken. He lifted his arm up and pointed down the hall.

"At the end of the hall, turn right and it'll be the third door on the right side. It should be obvious with all his Fraccion running around," Tesla directed. Ichigo nodded and turned away, heading to where Tesla said. Tesla turned to find Nnoitra-sama when he found himself face to face with the very familiar piano-key teeth. "Where ya been?" the question seemed simple, but the irritated grin that came with it told a different story.

-----

Ichigo walked slowly with his eyes cast on the floor. Even though Arrancar passed by somewhat frequently, he felt more alone than he ever felt in his life, more alone than when his mother died, more alone than when he was lost in his hollow stage. Ichigo stopped at the door Tesla said; he was right, there were a few bustling Arrancar wearing white coats.

Ichigo walked inside somewhat reluctantly. He had never wanted Grimmjow with him more than right now; he felt like he was going to be an only parent, stuck in Las Noches with no friends, allies, and his child would probably be made fun of. The thought made him even more sick to his stomach. Ichigo wanted Grimmjow to give him some sort of reassuring gesture, but he was nowhere to be seen.

With a deep breath, Ichigo stepped inside Szayel's lab. Szayel greeted him almost before Ichigo was fully inside. Szayel only acted kind towards him; the Espada's interest was more in his baby than his welfare. "Welcome, shinigami!" the ink hair man said cheerfully, though his eyes were glued to Ichigo's belly ( which only made Ichigo feel even MORE uncomfortable ). "Come with me."

Ichigo followed Szayel into a private room they had set up for Ichigo's checkups. Ichigo sat on the bed, waiting for his usual ultrasound. Ichigo subconsciously looked over to where Grimmjow usually stood, now just an empty space. Ichigo felt sick, physically sick. How could a stupid Espada have such control over him?

Ichigo's attention suddenly shifted back to Szayel as he asked him: "How many weeks are you along again?"

Ichigo looked down at his stomach. "18 weeks," he said in a distant voice. He was still daydreaming about Grimmjow.

Ichigo flinched as the cold liquid was applied to his stomach. He got used to the feeling easily and routinely looked up at the screen. His mind started shifting again. Szayel shook his arm quickly, bringing Ichigo back to reality ( once again ). "Congratulations shinigami! This one's a boy," Szayel cheered. Ichigo felt numb for a second, then he forgot all his problems. Szayel removed the controller and cleared off the liquid from Ichigo's belly.

Ichigo completely missed what Szayel was saying as he left the room and headed out to the hallway; he too excited to be worried about anything. Until he saw who was waiting for him outside the door. His smile turned into his usual scowl as Grimmjow just stood there in front of him, leaning against the wall. Secretly, Ichigo was exuberant to see him, but he wouldn't show it; that would only make Grimmjow more obligated to care, right?

"So what's the news?" Grimmjow questioned with his usual cocky-ass attitude. Ichigo turned his head and walked in the direction he hoped lead to Grimmjow's room. Grimmjow easily caught up with him. "Aww c'mon, tell me. I wanna know, dammit"

Ichigo was practically screaming inside he wanted to tell him immediately! But, that wouldn't be very fun now, would it? "Nothing much; I just know what the baby is..." Ichigo looked at Grimmjow from the corner of his eye. Grimmjow's face turned deadpan like he was in some sort of epiphany. Grimmjow stopped walking, then Ichigo stopped and turned to look at him. Grimmjow's face was almost priceless; it was a mixture between thought, constipation, and just plain confusion.

"I wanna know! What is it? Is it a girl? No way, it's gotta be a boy! Tell me!" Ichigo let a small grin take over his features. It was like holding the toy right in front of the kitten. "C'mon Ichi~"

Ichigo decided since he was the father, he could know what his baby was going to be, but when Ichigo went to answer the question, he looked up to see a crescent moon crash into Grimmjow, sending his blood over his white clothes, along with the white walls. Ichigo's eyes widened as his amused expression turned to pure panic.

"Grimmjow!" Ichigo screamed as he ran towards him.

"Damned shinigami!" Nnoitra called from down the hall, a chain going from his hand to the handle of his crescent scythe. Ichigo froze. He knew that Nnoitra was a higher rank than Grimmjow, which meant that there was no defense for him should Nnoitra decided to attack him. Ichigo's head turned slowly down the hall to see Nnoitra and a severely beaten Tesla behind him.

Ichigo's mouth gaped. Had Tesla ended up like this because of him? It should have been him that took the beating then, not Tesla. Nnoitra began to take long accentuated steps towards Ichigo, who took involuntary steps backwards until he was standing next to Grimmjow, who had a very long, open gash along his upper body. Ichigo felt like he was going to vomit right there in the hallway.

Before Ichigo could look back to where Nnoitra and Tesla were previously standing, they were both right in front of him ( Nnoitra more or less dragged Tesla, who had a bloody and bruised face ). Ichigo jumped back; his arms quickly attempted to cover his belly, but Nnoitra has his large scythe positioned right in front of him. "You're just like a woman then. I refuse to have some bitch be treated better than me!" Nnoitra thrust the sword closer at Ichigo, who quickly turned his head away and closed his eyes.

Tesla grabbed Nnoitra's arm, temporarily stopping him from getting any closed. Nnoitra's attention shifted to his Fraccion. "What you want, bitch?" Nnoitra yelled at him before using the same arm Tesla was holding on to to fling him back against a wall. Now Nnoitra faced back to Ichigo. "Maybe I'll just cut yer belly open, take out that thing inside ya, and chop it up right in front of you..." Nnoitra seemed to be talking to himself; Ichigo was too scared to move, think or even process words.

Nnoitra lifted his scythe high into the air above him. Ichigo closed his eyes and he began to think about all the people he loved. Grimmjow came up several times over the course of the few nanoseconds of thought. Here it came: the agonizing torture of Nnoitra's scythe. And then just as Ichigo found himself waiting for pain, all he heard was a metallic 'CRASH' of something. He opened one eye to see Nnoitra's scythe stopped still in the air. Ichigo looked around with both eyes now, seeing familiar green hair flowing in front of him.

"Ichigo! Ichigo say something!" Neliel's frantic voice rang out.

"N... Nel?" Ichigo's eyes were wide with shock at the sight before him: Nel, who was in her adult form, wearing her old Espada outfit, stood in front of himself and the bloodied, unconscious Grimmjow, holding her Zankpakuto high in the air, easily blocking Nnoitra's attack. Nnoitra's anger was obvious on his narrow face.

"Neliel, the last time I saw you you were a little baby lost in the desert, and here you are, all back to normal." Nnoitra made no attempt to hide the angst in his voice.

"Nnoitra, what purpose do you have attacking a defenseless human? I find that below despicable," was her only response. Nnoitra held his position, just itching to find his nemesis. "The next time you even get close to Ichigo, I'll kill you, Nnoitra."

"I'll just beat ya then, just like I will now!" Nnoitra called, raising his scythe up to attack again -- until a fox like voice echoed down the hall: "I wouldn' Nnoitra..."

Nnoitra whipped around, looking at Ichimaru Gin's form sauntering down to see the commotion. "Aww, what happen'd to poor Grimmy?" he asked with an obvious fake frown on his face. The fox captain's face then shifted to Ichigo, "An' aren't you supposed to be outta trouble?"

Ichigo looked at the floor quickly; Gin always made him feel unnaturally uncomfortable. "Well, someone take Grimmy and this 'un--" he pointed to Tesla's also unconscious form lying on the floor with some rubble, from the wall he crashed into, around him "--and patch up will ya?" With that, Gin walked away, back down to Aizen undoubtedly.

Nel slacked slightly, still having her guard up, but not in attacking position. She turned to pick up Grimmjow, tossing him over her shoulder and lending a hand to Ichigo. "C'mon, let's get him patched up," she said in a soothing voice. Ichigo took the hand offered to him and stood up, looking over to see Nnoitra taking Tesla in his arms almost delicately. Ichigo felt a pang in his heart...

-----

_Grimmjow's world suddenly started coming back to him; he could see Ichigo standing in front of him with his arms draped over his body. "Ichi..." Grimmjow took one step then stopped at the look Ichigo gave him. _

_"...So you wouldn't have to deal with and this anymore..." was all Ichigo said with a pained expression. Grimmjow was taken aback; he wanted nothing more than to take care of Ichigo and his child; to have them depend on him; to be there for him. _

_Grimmjow shook his head back and forth. "No, no, Ichi, I want-- Wait! Ichi!" Grimmjow yelled at the retreating form of Ichigo. The world around him turned pitch black. "ICHI!"_

Grimmjow shot up, a thin layer of cold sweat covered him; his breathing was frantic. Grimmjow took a moment to calm down, suddenly feeling a pain shoot up his torso. He looked down to see somewhat bloody bandages, partially out of view due a spiky mass of orange. Ichigo had his head rested on Grimmjow's chest; his belly was slightly elevated on Grimmjow's stomach. Grimmjow suddenly let out a hidden breath; Ichigo was still here, still with him, but obviously the outlet of breath stirred Ichigo. Grimmjow brought his arm around Ichigo's frame.

"About time you woke up," Grimmjow said with his usual ego-filled voice.

Ichigo looked up quickly, looking straight into Grimmjow's eyes. A small blush stained Ichigo's cheek; it had been a while since they were so serenely put together; just the two of them in silence without a care, until Grimmjow opened his mouth and ruined it: "Ichi, why... why did you not want me to come with you?"

Ichigo bit his bottom lip, hesitant on answering the question. "I guess... I just feel bad, that this had to happen to you; you were so wild, but now you're being limited, thanks to me, and to make it worse, you've been avoiding me," Ichigo said, a little louder than a whisper.

Grimmjow paused, thinking about what to say. He agreed with Ichigo, but it wasn't so much a bad thing; he was going to have a family all to himself. "Ichi, I'm not disappointed or sad or angry about having a family. In fact, I'm excited for it. I wanna teach this kid how to fight, how to beat the hell outta anyone. I may not have expected this, but I'm sure as hell not backing out of it. I wanna see this kid as much as you." Grimmjow's answer was much more involved than Ichigo had expected.

"Well, it's a boy, if you're still wanting to know," Ichigo admitted. Grimmjow's sudden tensing, then immediate relax made Ichigo feel completely excited again. "Are you still excited about training him?"

Grimmjow's voice had a serious attitude: "Hell yes!"

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**A/N**: Gahh, I never, ever plan to write so much again! Well, I hope the ending wasn't too sappy, but now I must find an entrance into the next chapter. Please leave reviews~


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: **Thanks for the reviews! Sorry it took me so long to update, but I had many tests, followed by a load of Finals. But now, I should be updating more often, since now I'm on Summer Vacation! :D

Please enjoy~

--

Captain-Commander Yamamoto stood in his quarters, watching over the SeiReiTei. He thought long and hard about a conflict discussed in the Captain's meeting a short while ago: Kurosaki Ichigo had disappeared without a trace; his whereabouts weren't positive, but there was speculation that he had left to train with the Vaizords, but he'd been gone almost three months now, which seemed highly odd, even for training. But the real conflict had been whether or not to go searching for him – if the shinigami went to where they believed the Vaizords, and Ichigo wasn't with them, that could eventually result in word getting around one of their most powerful assets had disappeared; if Aizen found out that the Soul Society is in a slight panic, then wouldn't that provoke him into an attack? It had been a while since they believed the War would start – and the Captain Commander wondered if this delay was good or bad; could Ichigo be involved?

But what if Ichigo was with the Vaizords? Then they could assume he had gotten stronger, and they would be more ready for the War. Yamamoto wasn't happy about being associated with someone who was part Hollow; Hollows were something that they aimed to wipe out, and now a Halfling was an ally. It wasn't a big matter, but it did bother him from time to time.

--

_The meeting began moments after the last few Captains arrived. They all took their places in uniformed lines, waiting for the conference to start. They all figured it had something to do with Kurosaki__'__s disappearance, but that was just a vague rumor being passed around. _

_The Captain-Commander began: __"__This meeting will begin with shocking information: Kurosaki Ichigo has disappeared. As of now, he__'__s been gone nearly a month. He__'__s suspected to have joined the Vaizords for training, but that is unconfirmed information, and will be treated as such. The War with Aizen should be getting ready to start, and with Kurosaki gone, we need to be training even more to make up for loss; of course, there is a possibility he might reappear, but we won__'__t take a chance on that.__"_

_All the Captain__'__s eyes widened slightly, a few whispers being passed between Kyouraku and Ukitake. _

_"__Silence!__"__ the Captain-Commander began again: __"__Since Aizen has made a move to study Kurosaki in the past, there is also a small chance he could be in Hueco Mundo; however, I__'__m highly reluctant to take a risk to search for him if he is in fact in Hueco Mundo; we should be preparing the Soul Society for War.__"_

_The other Captains__'__ faces turned from shock to thought. This was a tough decision: Search for Kurosaki in Hueco Mundo, and risk precious lives, or leave him to wherever he is, and have a chance of him turning on Soul Society __–__ and what made things more insecure was that these were all theories, theories that had no ratio of the chances of being right or wrong. _

_The Captains all nodded their heads. The Commander spoke, __"__This meeting is adjourned.__"_

_--_

Yamamoto shook his head. If Ichigo _did_ turn out to be against them, then he would have no choice but to kill the traitor; 'Traitor' was a too-common word now. The betrayal from Aizen and the others made the Soul Society become untrusting, and when a wrong move was made, 'traitor' was the word thrown at one another. And now to have Ichigo, the one who almost single-handedly defeated the Soul Society, was now a traitor. That would only cause more turmoil.

Yamamoto turned to see an emissary crouched behind him. "Excuse me, Captain-Commander Yamamoto, but I have important news: Inoue Orihime has been captured by an Espada. Forces tried to interlope them, but he disappeared before they could do anything. As of now, Inoue Orihime is now in Hueco Mundo."

Yamamoto nodded and dismissed the courier. He turned back to face the SeiReiTei, his face unreadable. _'__What a mess__…'_

--

Renji and Rukia quickly sped off back to the World of the Living ( they had spied on the Captain's meeting, and were the ones who tried to stop the Espada from taking Orihime ). They seemed to be failing when it came to their friends lately: they had let Ichigo disappear without a trace before they could figure out why he had changed so much, and they had let Orihime slip through their fingers. It seemed unfair that those who shouldn't even be involved were the ones being taken away from their homes.

Renji looked to Rukia, whose face was cast down at the floor, her face an enigma of emotions. He places an arm around her shoulder, "Don't worry Rukia, we'll get them back."

She didn't look at him, her face didn't change, and she didn't loosen her stance. "The only way to get them back would be to get them from Hueco Mundo… which Yamamoto said he wouldn't do. He's willing to let them stay in Hueco Mundo under Aizen!" she finally looked at him, tears gathering in her eyes, "He's going to let them be tortured by Aizen and the Arrancar! How is that fair!" A tear fell, followed by another, and another, until she was sobbing; her shoulders shook and her face was contorted into unreadable sadness, but she didn't let out a single whine or noise.

Renji felt sick seeing her this way. He made a decision: "Hey, Rukia, do you think we could get Urahara's help… to get to Hueco Mundo?" Rukia stopped shaking; her tears stopped falling, except for a few that were already in the process before Renji offered the idea. "I mean, we could ask the others for help, then we could just go to Hueco Mundo, and get back Inoue and Ichigo."

Renji's voice seemed so sure, but he felt uneasy inside: would it really be that easy? The only one who could consistently fight on Captain level was Ichigo and himself – and Ichigo was stronger than he was. But, now Ichigo was gone and he would have to support the others that went with him and Rukia.

--

Renji proposed the idea to Urahara, and was surprised when Urahara and Yoruichi both volunteered to accompany them on their journey. Of course, Chad agreed, but Uryu seemed to have disappeared sometime during the discussion. Urahara said it would take a few days preparation for Hueco Mundo, and in that time, the others should be getting ready for their mission, which was not only dangerous, but going against Yamamoto's wishes.

--

**A/N: **Soo, how was that? I'm sorry if it was kinda confusing at points, I really didn't think about this chapter as I wrote it. I only wrote what I thought on that one moment~

Just a few things that might help clear up the story:

**X_** Since Ichigo disappeared when he four months along, and it's been three months, now he's at seven months! ( Yes, a bit of a skip, but I didn't to write out every single month )

**X_** I took the actual series' events and… rearranged them

**X_** Since Ichigo had already disappeared, Orihime wasn't taken in secret, so of course she was discovered being kidnapped by Ulquiorra

If you need more things cleared up, please leave questions in your reviews and I'll answer them in the next chapter~

Thanks!

**BTW**: I don't know how I'm going to end this story, I don't want to continue it forever. BUT, I do have a few side stories that I want to write for this – so maybe I'll write those as I think of a conclusion~


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N**: Gahh, I thought I would be able to update faster now that school's out, but the whole "summer" thing has taken all my writing ideas~! Oh no! Writer's block! But, I think that I'll definitely focus on finishing this story… I only plan to have a few more chapters in it.

**Anmita**: Thank you for your sole review. Even though I didn't get more reviews, I still feel happy that my story was read.

And thanks for the spelling correction~! Your review made me actually want to finish something I started – which never happens~ XD

**Side Note**: This story changes between Ichigo's and Grimmy's perspectives, yet they're both in a general point of view~ I'm saying just in case someone gets confused. ^^

* * *

He thought that he would always stay and love Ichigo forever, but just from the past few days, he knew that these next few months were going to be a bitch. Ichigo was making the strangest demands ever, and not only that, he was getting meaner and more liberal on making them!

Grimmjow stomped down the halls of Las Noches. He said he going out to get Ichigo some food ( which Ichigo heavily agreed with ), but in all reality, he was heading for a fight. **Someone **had to be in the mood for a fight, ne? Grimmjow wanted to fight Ichigo, but under certain circumstances in which he more than partially caused, Ichigo was out for the count.

Someone, anyone, had to be out training out in the desert. He really didn't care who – Hell, he'd take on a horridly weak Hollow if need be. He just needed to punch the holy living Hell out of something fast.

As Grimmjow walked far enough away from Las Noches, he concluded if he let out enough reiatsu, more than enough Hollows would show up. But… it looked like someone had beat him to it: Swarms of Hollows were gathering in a far off section of Hueco Mundo, and from the look of things, that far off section really wasn't something that would take a lot of time for Grimmjow to reach.

He headed off towards the mass of reiatsu, hoping there was gonna be an opponent worth fighting on the other end.

* * *

Ichigo stormed out of Grimmjow's quarters. What in the name of Aizen was taking that damned Espada so freaking long?! The kitchen – that was where Grimm said he was going, right? '_Well, if he isn't baking something, then I'm going to rip him a new Hollow hole_,' Ichigo thought. The Arrancars walking in the halls quickly fled from the angry, pregnant shinigami heading towards them.

Ichigo found a large pair of doors to his left. '_They must be it, then. Watch out Grimmy-kins__…_' Ichigo thought darkly. He burst in through the doors, instantly regretting leaving his nice, cozy living space. Aizen, Gin, and Ulquiorra seem to be in a very important meeting. Despite his fear though, he noticed a girl standing next to Ulquiorra who looked really familiar, but for some reason he couldn't place her from behind.

Ichigo instantly turned, making a very anxious apology: "I'm very sorry, Aizen-sama. I mistook this place for another. Please, forgive me," he said, very shakily mind you. He fumbled trying to make it out the door quietly, but even so, a voice stopped him:

"No, it's not a problem at all, Kurosaki. In fact, I was just about to call you. I believe you know this woman," Aizen said calmly, and even a little amusedly.

Ichigo turned, eyes wide. He knew that he'd seen this girl before: "Inoue!" He unthinkingly ran towards her, but before he could reach her, Ulquiorra sonido'd in front of him, blocking his path.

"Kurosaki Ichigo, you'd disrespect Aizen-sama like this?" Ulquiorra said in his usual monotone voice.

"No – I didn't mean – !" Ichigo began, but he was cut off by Aizen:

"It's fine, Ulquiorra. It's natural to run towards a comrade, right? Please, Ichigo, greet Inoue Orihime," he said just as coolly as before.

Ichigo stepped passed Ulquiorra, heading towards Orihime. "What are you doing here…?" he said, a little breathlessly.

"I'm not sure, but… Kurosaki-kun, what's wrong with your stomach?" she responded in almost a whisper.

Ichigo's hands instinctively covered his enlarged belly. "Well, um, you see… eh… Well, I'm… pregnant," he said, quite embarrassed and more than slightly mortified.

Orihime stilled, confusion very much apparent in her wide blue eyes. "Pregnant? But… but Kurosaki-kun, you're a man," she said. Ichigo felt a little bit of déjà vu as he remembered a conversation like this almost eight months prior with Urahara.

"Well, yeah, but...." he couldn't find it in him to finish his sentence. Great – he was right: his friends **would **look at him different. But, if Orihime didn't know, then obviously Rukia and Renji didn't know, and if they didn't know, then Ichigo concluded that Soul Society didn't know, or if they did, it wasn't general knowledge.

Gin decided to take a little pity on Ichi and finished his sentence for him: "Well, still, Ichi's got a baby on the way, and Grimmy's gonna be a daddy!" Gin put on an innocent-looking smile on his face, but that only caused Ichigo to be even more mortified.

"'Grimmy'? As in Grimmjow? Ichigo, what is he talking about…?" Orihime looked at Ichigo, somewhat flustered.

Ichigo attempted words again, but an Arrancar burst through the door. In a frenzy he said, "Aizen-sama – I'm sorry to disturb you, but shinigami have been spotted in Hueco Mundo! There have been reports of at least seven shinigami and one Quincy. Several of those mentioned are Captain-class. Nnoitra-sama and Grimmjow-sama are already on scene."

"Ah, thank you, Tesla. Go join Nnoitra, if you will?" Aizen said, not sounding the least bit frazzled.

"Yes, Aizen-sama. Please, excuse me," Tesla said quickly, already out the door to wherever Nnoitra was.

Ichigo was quiet and still for a long while. Grimmjow was already on scene? So, he's fighting? Ulquiorra disappeared noiselessly beside him. Ichigo worded a silent plea to Ulquiorra's general direction: '_Please, protect him in my place_.'

* * *

Grimmjow reached the site of the reiatsu, intrigued in what he found: quite a few shinigami were battling Hollows, and quite a few of these shinigami were Captain-level. '_Perfect for me_,' Grimmjow thought.

He headed straight for the group, but a strong hand on his shoulder stopped him. "I get the strongest one, shitface," Nnoitra said. "I'll show you how to really fight, as I recall, our last fight showed you have no fighting skill whatsoever."

"Shut up, Nnoitra, got me by surprise is all. I'll show **you** how to fight one of these days," Grimmjow hissed between his teeth.

"Even though I'm a higher rank than you?" Nnoitra smirked.

"Only 'cuz of your Hierro. Now get lost!" Grimmjow shouted back.

"Fine. Tesla, report back to Aizen," Nnoitra commanded, looking back at his Fraccion.

--

Grimmjow headed for the big guy with his hair formed into more than intense spikes. He was pushed out of the way by Nnoitra, who promptly yelled at him, "You go after the weaker ones, I think your skill level _may _be able to handle them. If not, I'll come and save you once I get through with these guys… or maybe I won't. Weaklings disgust me," he said in his most condescending voice.

Grimmjow began a retort but was cut off by a very aggravated voice from somewhere behind him: "Grimmjow!! Where's Ichigo and Orihime!?"

Renji quickly released his Zanpakutō, and hurled the expanded bladed at him, which Grimmjow caught effortlessly. "Wouldn't you like to know? From the feeling of your reiatsu, you're weaker than Ichigo. Actually, only a few of you are stronger than Ichi....Isn't that boring," Grimmjow said, deigning to care. He stuck his pinky in his ear, looking like he was trying to find something.

This time, Rukia charged at him, her Zanpakutō also released. Again, Grimmjow caught the sword bare-handed with absolutely no effort. "Well, this is going to be a lot more boring than I thought it would be. Now, which one of you is actually the strongest?" Grimmjow's impatience was visually growing: his grin from his arrival was replaced with a severely irritated frown, accompanied by a glare from his marvelously blue eyes, his stance was stiff, but not poised in a battle stance and his hands were placed deep in his pockets.

Out of Chad, Ishida, Renji, and Rukia, two stepped forward: Renji and Ishida. Grimmjow's voice was impatient, "Seriously? Wow, you guys really are nothing without Ichigo, huh? Pathetic, well then, I'll just take all of you out!" Grimmjow leapt forward with no warning. Renji and Ishida were pushed back quite a few hundred yards back.

The Quincy looked up, surprise evident on his features. Were they really this week against him? Ishida knew that his still-fresh powers weren't nearly strong enough to beat this guy, but somehow he needed to get buy and save Inoue and Ichigo, though Ishida kept telling himself he wasn't risking his life in Hueco Mundo for Ichigo. Ishida attacked again first.

Renji had a similar aspect of emotion stuck on his face as well. Though, deep in his heart, he wasn't really shocked about being called weaker than Ichigo, it was surprise in what Grimmjow called him: 'Ichi'. Where did _he_ get the right to call Ichigo 'Ichi'? Renji activated his Bankai, aiming Zabimaru's fully released form at Grimmjow, already occupied with Ishida.

"You shinigami insult me!" Grimmjow yelled out, a Cero already developing in his palm. After a few more seconds, he shot it right at Renji's Bankai, almost completely obliterating it.

Grimmjow's grin only slightly came back to his features. Maybe if he dragged this out, he'd get the fighting he wanted, but something caught his eye: a small and almost unnoticeable blur was heading back to Las Noches. If they were here for the same purpose these guys were, then they were going after Ichigo! Grimmjow turned after a quick yet powerful punch to Ishida.

"Hey! Where are you going?! We're not done here!" Renji called after him. Grimmjow ignored him and headed after the blur he saw. There was no way he was going to let them get to Ichigo after he'd been here for three months already.

* * *

"Kisuke, what are we doing here exactly?" Yoruichi and Urahara were heading straight for Las Noches, going at a pretty good pace.

"Well, I'm here to check up on Ichigo-san; I haven't seen him for a few months, ya know," he said, a grin obvious on his face.

"Really, Kisuke, if you wanted to see him that badly, you'd have come here earlier. What are we _really _here for?"

"I never could fool you, could I? Well, we're here as… how would you say? Negotiators?" Urahara answered with a somewhat serious tone underlying in his voice.

"What do you mean?"

"You'll find out when we get there…"

* * *

**A/N**: Alrighty, as you can see, my avoidance of a fight scene is most obvious. I'm terrible at scenes so detailed as that. In fact, during shows, and movies, and even books sometimes, I skip all the fight scenes.

Even though they're "Action", I find them monotonous.

However, if someone is willing to write a few fight scenes for me, with detail of course, I'd be willing to hand over all fight scene credit to them~!

Please, **Review**. I'm almost done with this, and I need as much advice as I can get so it doesn't end horridly XD


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